Liverpool 5-2 AS Roma - Player Ratings

Liverpool beat AS Roma 5-2 in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League semifinal at Anfield. Mo Salah scored a first-half brace, before a second-half strike from Sadio Mane and a brace from Roberto Firmino seemingly put the tie to bed.

But Liverpool's perfect night was soured slightly at the end as Roma got themselves two away goals through Edin Dzeko and a Diego Perotti penalty.

Here's how each player fared on another fantastic European night at Anfield.

---

Liverpool FC

Loris Karius - 6/10

He wasn't really tested too much in terms of Roma's crosses, with most of them being straightforward catches.

He had a lucky escape in the first half, as Aleksandar Kolarov's thunderbolt of a shot slipped through his hands to hit the crossbar.

Trent Alexander-Arnold - 7/10

The young Scouser just keeps on improving. He was rather secure defensively for most part of the game, but it was his passing that stood out.

The two passes to set up Salah's two assists on the night oozed class. He was troubled when Perotti came on for Roma.

Dejan Lovren - 5/10

For 80 minutes, Lovren did really well. After that, the Lovren that Liverpool fans never want to see turned up.

He was caught under a Radja Nainggolan cross that fell for Dzeko to bury home. He was flustered after that and made some elementary errors.

Virgil van Dijk - 7/10

Majestic. He won his headers, he thumped his clearances away, and didn't shut his mouth for one minute.

It wasn't a performance from the Dutchman that warranted the concession of two goals. Jurgen Klopp will be hoping for a similar performance at the Stadio Olimpico next week.

Andrew Robertson - 6/10

He started off shakily, as he was letting Cengiz Under get past him a little too easily. But he tightened up as the game went on, and became more of an influence going forward.

He should've had an assist late in the game, but Georginio Wijnaldum made no contact with his cross.

Jordan Henderson - 8/10

The Englishman put on a proper captain's display. The Reds had got off to a slow start, and the skipper was quick to realise that and wake them up from their slumber.

He won a couple of tackles, and that was enough for the tide to turn. He was fantastic defensively throughout the game.

James Milner - 7/10

You always expect Milner to never stop running. On the night, Milner never stopped running. He put in an inch-perfect cross from a corner for Firmino to score Liverpool's fifth.

That enabled Milner to break the Champions League record for the most assists in a single season.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain - N/A

He was not on the pitch for long enough to warrant a number being put on his performance. He did have one shot on target early in the game though, but it was a comfortable save for Alisson.

Mohamed Salah - 10/10

Two goals, two assists, just another day in the life of the King of Egypt. He scored his 42nd and 43rd goals of the season with two exquisite finishes in the first half.

After the interval, he was not in the mood to show his former employers any mercy as he put in two delicious right-footed balls for Mane and Firmino to score.

Sadio Mane - 6/10

He got himself his goal, eventually. But in truth, he probably should have had himself a hat-trick.

He missed two gilt-edged opportunities in the space of two first-half minutes. It was an off-day for the Senegalese, even though he scored.

Roberto Firmino - 9/10

Klopp calls the Brazilian "the system". In this game, he showed why his manager rates him as highly as he does.

He dropped deeper to help the Liverpool midfield who were getting overpowered by Roma's physicality, and that helped the Reds put their foot on the Italians' throat.

He got himself a beautiful assist for Salah's second and followed it up with two second-half goals.

Substitutes

Georginio Wijnaldum - 7/10

He provided pace, power and energy in the midfield. Playing in a more attacking role than he normally does, Wijnaldum thrived as he gave the Daniele De Rossi and Kevin Strootman a nightmare. He should have scored Liverpool's sixth late in the game, though.

Danny Ings - 5/10

After coming on for Salah, he barely had a touch of the ball. When he did, he gave it away a little too easily.

Ragnar Klavan - N/A

Came on for the last two minutes of injury time, as Klopp looked to preserve the three-goal lead.

The Roma defence was shaky for a large part of the game

AS Roma

Alisson Becker - 6/10

There was little the Brazilian could've done to stop any of Liverpool's goals, but he was not his usual self.

That was exemplified when he spilled a corner in the second half. He's had better games in his life, to put it mildly.

Federico Fazio - 5/10

Prior to the game, he was thought of as the weak link in the Roma defense, due to his lack of pace.

And it was proved right time and again in the game, with Mane, in particular, giving him a rough time. If the Senegalese had his shooting boots on, it would've been a much worse game for Fazio.

Kostas Manolas - 5/10

The leader of the Roma back-line didn't lead. He panicked in the face of wave after wave of Liverpool attacks and wasn't his usual self at all.

Juan Jesus - 3/10

His nightmares for a few days will feature a certain curly-haired Egyptian. He was torn to pieces by Salah who had the Brazilian dance to the tunes his magical left foot was playing. Jesus was thoroughly outclassed until he was substituted by Perotti.

Alessandro Florenzi - 5/10

He had a quiet game. His crosses lacked quality, and his defending wasn't anything to write home about either.

He was troubled by the combination of Robertson and Mane, who had him isolated in multiple in two-on-one situations.

Aleksandar Kolarov - 6/10

The Serb was the best of a mediocre lot in the Roma defence. He bombed up and down the left flank tirelessly, but the usually trusted left foot wasn't quite living up to its reputation.

In the one moment it did, he was extremely unlucky as a thunderbolt hit the crossbar instead of giving Roma the lead.

Daniele De Rossi - 5/10

He started the game off really well, controlling the game with his passing ability. But once Liverpool upped the intensity, he found it difficult to deal with the sheer relentless that Henderson, Milner and Wijnaldum brought.

Kevin Strootman - 5/10

As with De Rossi, in the first 25 minutes, when Liverpool didn't get started, he looked comfortable. But he wilted under the relentless pressure put on him by the Reds.

Radja Nainggolan - 7/10

He was Roma's best player on the night. His ability to retain possession under pressure came to the fore, especially in the first half.

But even he faded away in the second period, as Henderson imposed his physicality on the Belgian.

Cengiz Under - 4/10

The young Turk was anonymous. He made a few good runs early in the game, but that aside, there was very little joy he got.

Edin Dzeko - 7/10

He never stopped trying, and as a result, got himself the fourth goal at Anfield in his career. He got lucky that Lovren misread the flight of the ball into the box, but once it fell to him, the composure and the quality in that finish was outstanding.

Substitutes

Patrick Schick - 6/10

He put himself about and tried to be a creative influence on the game. Unfortunately for Roma, he only tried, he didn't really succeed very often.

Maxime Gonalons - 5/10

He came on with about 20 minutes remaining and didn't really do much of note.

Diego Perotti - 8/10

He came on and changed the complexion of the tie. His direct running caused Liverpool plenty of problems.

He calmly tucked away the penalty to give the Italians their second away goal, and could easily have had another goal, when he met Dzeko's cross at the near-post, only to send the ball wide.